The Teen Scene: Past and Present

[methodwriter85]

Thinking about how lame the current teen scene is currently with Lima Bean and JJ made me think about when I actually enjoyed teens on the show...

 

The best Days teen scene for me was the late 90's/early 00's, with Belle, Shawn, Phillip, Chloe, and Mimi. I loved the Last Chance Dance Blast, I loved the two-year story arc of Jan Spears' bullying, leading up to the Puerto Rico trip. I loved the supporting characters like Gigantor and Nerdy Boy with Abs. I loved that they actually took the time to develop the friendships, romances, and rivalries of that generation. I enjoyed the whole ride through with Salem High's class of 2002.

 

Well, until the Alien thing, but they were out of high school by then.

 

This show is probably too cheap to do another actual teen scene again. That's why it's basically just Lima Bean and JJ, with occasional pop-ups of Rory and some random "bad girl" or Lima's disapproving friend.

Edited March 7, 2015 by methodwriter85

[jsm1125]

This may have been early 20's, as opposed to teens, but I liked the Chelsea and Stephanie college era, particularly the Ford Decker portion of it.

[JBC344]

I agree with the Belle, Shawn, Mimi, Phillip, Chloe teen scene being the best they have had in the last few decades.  TPTB really did put a lot of focus and attention on all those characters and they weren't segmented from the rest of the general cast.  It was a pretty well integrated teen scene.

 

I'm always partial to the Sami, Jaime, Lucas, Austin, Carrie plot lines but fully understand they weren't really classified as "teen scene".

 

I realize that I also enjoyed the Chelsea, Abby, Stefanie, Max, Nick storylines but they weren't really "teen scene" either.  Or at least Abby and Chelsea were but they were more like a twosome until they were older and the rest of their age group was expanded.

[LeftPhalange]

 

I realize that I also enjoyed the Chelsea, Abby, Stefanie, Max, Nick storylines but they weren't really "teen scene" either.  Or at least Abby and Chelsea were but they were more like a twosome until they were older and the rest of their age group was expanded.

 

It's amazing how Abby was actually a decent character back in the day with Chelsea. Now look at her.

[methodwriter85]

This may have been early 20's, as opposed to teens, but I liked the Chelsea and Stephanie college era, particularly the Ford Decker portion of it.

 

I'll count the college scene as the teen scene. College scenes though tend to fizzle out at some point- the only one I can think of where we actually saw the college scene graduate would be on One Life to Live with Jessica/Natalie/Marcie etc circa 2004.

 

What I loved about Salem High's Class of '02 was that they had an actual, defined story arc about bullying and Mean Girls, but with a girl that actually felt like a realistic high school bitch. (And could actually act.)

Edited March 7, 2015 by methodwriter85

[JBC344]

Jan Spears was a great actress find and great character.  I loved when they switched gears and had Shawn D lose his memory and begin a relationship with Jan.

[methodwriter85]

She's also one of the best recasts I've ever seen. I literally did not realize that the Jan who kidnapped Shawn was a recast. I really thought it was the same girl. Casting really lucked out with her- I didn't think I was watching a different character at all.

Edited March 7, 2015 by methodwriter85

[methodwriter85]

This current teen scene is the most bizarre one I've ever seen. Mainly because it consists of a 50-year old mother as the bad girl, a 50-year old man as the righteous hunk, and a 50-year old mother as the scheming blackmailer.

Edited April 9, 2015 by methodwriter85

[Dandesun]

This current teen scene is the most bizarre one I've ever seen. Mainly because it consists of a 50-year old mother as the bad girl, a 50-year old man as the righteous hunk, and a 50-year old mother as the scheming blackmailer.

 

BWAH!! Sadly true!

 

Dear oh dear...

[methodwriter85]

Paige's birthday "party" really says it all about the current teen scene- just Rory and JJ? Seriously? She has no other friends who are her age?

[Rick Kitchen]

Paige's birthday "party" really says it all about the current teen scene- just Rory and JJ? Seriously? She has no other friends who are her age?

And Daphne.

 

What ever happened to Paige's high school friend who hated JJ?

[QuelleC]

Who cares at least she has a roommate and moved out of the
Evecave.  One of the smarter things the show has done except she's always there.

 

Oh, Marianne, I just remembered.   I wondered that too but she had the same line over and over again.

Edited May 28, 2015 by QuelleC

[Petunia13]

Mary Beth was the one who hated JJ with a passion. Her new best friend Daphne- who I like more than Paige and Mary Beth combined -is more sensible and just thinks both JJ and Lima Bean are being obsessive dysfunctional idiots and tried to impact logical advice.

[methodwriter85]

Bad Drug Dealer Boy is cute. I like that tall dark-haired jock look. It's a shame he's clearly only a plot point to try and make JJ into the hero.

 

It's a shame True O'Brien is leaving just when I was getting to like Paige. Does anyone know where her last airdate is supposed to be? October?

[Apprentice79]

Probably in September, when the new regime start their tenure...

[methodwriter85]

Probably in September, when the new regime start their tenure...

 

I think it's funny that JJ's teen scene is pretty much over after two years, and now they've already started a new one.

 

I wonder if they would have held off on doing the SORAS treatment on Ciara, Chase, Joey etc etc if the JJ teen scene had actually been decent.

[DisneyBoy]

Well Paige was trapped in a lousy storyline, Rory was used and discarded and the other one became Storm. Whatyagonnado?

[methodwriter85]

Well Paige was trapped in a lousy storyline, Rory was used and discarded and the other one became Storm. Whatyagonnado?

 

The biggest problem with the storyline is that it was basically based around Dan, Jennifer, and Eve driving the story, not the actual teens.

 

It's actually a shame, because True O'Brien really did start showing some chops and sparks on the show.

 

I'm trying to decide if they're going with the brother/sister thing for Ciara and Chase, or if they're going to set them up. I'm leaning towards Theo being for Ciara, though.

Edited November 5, 2015 by methodwriter85

[JBC344]

I'm curious about it too.  I wonder if Theo will still be autistic and if it will continue to be a part of his character.  Theo and Ciara can be interesting considering not only the family's history but Theo and Ciara were always shown to have a "brother/sister, cousin" relationship which I always found realistic and sweet. 

 

I'm also wondering if Theo now older will be more integrated into the Dimera side of his family.  With Joe Mascolo's health issues, Stefano is not long for the show, just leaving Andre and Chad.  I could totally see Theo becoming more into the Dimera side of his family to Abe's objections. 

[QuelleC]

I hope Theo's role is stepped up too.  OTOH I felt icky about Ciara talking him into things and getting him in trouble.  I haven't yet worked out who's eligible to date whom family wise.

[JBC344]

Well, Ciara and Joey are the only ones who are related, their cousins.  Ciara and Theo have been raised as "best friends/cousins" but are not actually related.

[NumberCruncher]

I know people seem quick to start pairing the teens off romantically, but it would be refreshing to allow them some time to develop as individual characters before that happens. I really wonder if Higley and Griffith are talented enough to pull off some compelling storylines (preferably tied to their family members) before they start having the teens bed-hop.

[QuelleC]

I don't want them paired off either...it's just weird having Ciara and Chase be brother and sister.  I hope they don't go there.

[methodwriter85]

I'm curious about it too.  I wonder if Theo will still be autistic and if it will continue to be a part of his character.  Theo and Ciara can be interesting considering not only the family's history but Theo and Ciara were always shown to have a "brother/sister, cousin" relationship which I always found realistic and sweet.

I'm pretty sure Theo is still being presented as autistic. The teen actor playing had a pattern of speech that indicated that he was trying to play Theo as autistic.

Edited November 6, 2015 by methodwriter85

[NumberCruncher]

I definitely got the impression that Theo is autistic from today's episode. They even had Joey there trying to make Theo feel better/normal by focusing on his talent of remembering baseball stats and having Joey clarify that his "my mom will kill me" was not literal. I'm already loving the friendship between the two just based on those scenes.

[Rick Kitchen]

I will not be surprised at all to see Ciara and Claire clash over one boy or other.

[Apprentice79]

I will not be surprised at all to see Ciara and Claire clash over one boy or other.

Claire is occupying Allie's spot..It would have been cool to see Ciara and Allie as rivals over Chase...The show hinted that the two girls would have been rivals in the future..

[methodwriter85]

Claire is occupying Allie's spot..It would have been cool to see Ciara and Allie as rivals over Chase...The show hinted that the two girls would have been rivals in the future..

 

They probably chose Claire over Allie because Sami is so clearly not sticking around, and her parents are probably much, much cheaper.

 

It looks like JJ has officially graduated out of the teen scene because it seems like they're moving him into Gabi's age range. And it's been kind of noticeable that they've been dressing JJ more "adult" like.

Edited November 11, 2015 by methodwriter85

[Apprentice79]

They probably chose Claire over Allie because Sami is so clearly not sticking around, and her parents are probably much, much cheaper.

 

It looks like JJ has officially graduated out of the teen scene because it seems like they're moving him into Gabi's age range. And it's been kind of noticeable that they've been dressing JJ more "adult" like.

Allie is also Lucas' daughter. She  could have come home to help her dad deal with Will's death...

[Rick Kitchen]

Allie is also Lucas' daughter. She  could have come home to help her dad deal with Will's death...

 

And her mother's apparent disappearance.

[BlackMamba]

Who remembers the worst actress that ever played on DOOL or even daytime tv- Charity Rahmer

Edited January 3, 2016 by BlackMamba

[methodwriter85]

Oh my god, she was hilarious.

 

So, I guess Claire is now occupying the Sami Brady plot of meddling to keep her mother and her lover apart?

 

Joey is cute, but wooden as hell.

[QuelleC]

I don't consider Claire to be meddling.  She's right, her mother is a horrible person who needs to be stopped.  There is no explaining Belle's attitude other than that.  Claire tried to stop her, begged in fact, and since she's still a child she called her father.  She wants them to at least try now that the divorce papers made it real.  At least she hasn't taken up with the male equivalent of an Ava.  She comes across as a little too bright for that.  As far as her singing voice, it's the least of my problems.

[BlackMamba]

So, I guess Claire is now occupying the Sami Brady plot of meddling to keep her mother and her lover apart?

I don't consider Claire to be meddling. She's right, her mother is a horrible person who needs to be stopped. There is no explaining Belle's attitude other than that. Claire tried to stop her, begged in fact, and since she's still a child she called her father. She wants them to at least try now that the divorce papers made it real.

Thats the thing! Shawn filed for divorce and I bet hes going to turn into a total Edited January 19, 2016 by BlackMamba

[QuelleC]

It's because Belle has already explored her options that she's being sued for divorce.

[methodwriter85]

Ciara got SORASed so they can have her get raped? Are you fucking kidding me? I didn't think we'd ever see an acting rape scene that was as cringeworthy as Sami's rape by Alan, but this was just awful. The kid playing Chase has the face of a 12-year old on an overgrown body- it's just not believable.

 

Due to the leaked audition, I was expecting a fun little hellraiser and a bad little rich girl with a secret heart of gold, not what we're getting here. They could have at least let her be "bad" fun before turning her into a saint after getting raped, like Marty on OLTL or Liz on GH.

 

Claire right now is the only thing I'm actually liking about this teen scene. I actually enjoy the actress and her bitchy, petulant attitude towards her crazy-ass mother.

[DisneyBoy]

Wait....the actor playing Theo is autistic in real life?

In fairness, I have also found Ciarra's coloring a little surprising given her parentage, but it's not a big deal. How much do Brady and Theresa look like their parents?

Edited April 22, 2016 by DisneyBoy

[dingochick]

Can I bitch and moan more here about how much I can't stand the SORASed version of Ciara, or rather, the person playing her? I don't understand how she got cast when her acting is not up to par. Granted, I know that Days often has wooden terrible actors, but come on..there had to be ONE girl out there who could play Ciara without a monotone.  Gripe grumble rant.

Disneyboy, I haven't seen anything that says Kyler Pettis (SORASed Theo) is autistic IRL.  He was on Ray Donovan and studies acting with a private coach is what I saw on IMDB.  Of the teen scene, I think I like him the best.  The rest are drippy.  Except maybe for the kid playing Chase, but they ruined him. Thanks, Days.

[methodwriter85]

She was cast because she looks a lot like Kristian Alfonso. That's pretty much why. Same reason why Brandon Beemer got the Shawn part despite never being particularly good, either.

I really think she could be a lot better if she underwent vocal training, but it might too late.

So far the teenager I actually like is Claire, so of course she's barely on.

[methodwriter85]

...and that teen scene is basically dead now, with Claire and Theo as the remnants and Joey looking like he's about to head over to Statesville.

Ciara might get recast, but wow that character was a waste. Can we just retcon everything and bring back Lauren Boles?

Edited August 10, 2017 by methodwriter85

[DisneyBoy]

That would be great. How I wish she'd have a freakish growth spurt so we could just add makeup and pretend she's 18. I honestly don't care if she is five years too young to play Ciara's current age...just style her appropriately and avoid love stories for a while.

Wow - there was actually a change.org petition to get the previous actress fired!

https://www.change.org/p/nbc-please-remove-vivian-jovanni-as-ciara-brady-on-days-of-our-lives

Edited August 10, 2017 by DisneyBoy

[methodwriter85]

3 hours ago, DisneyBoy said:

That would be great. How I wish she'd have a freakish growth spurt so we could just add makeup and pretend she's 18. I honestly don't care if she is five years too young to play Ciara's current age...just style her appropriately and avoid love stories for a while.

Wow - there was actually a change.org petition to get the previous actress fired!

https://www.change.org/p/nbc-please-remove-vivian-jovanni-as-ciara-brady-on-days-of-our-lives

Yeah. Who says wishes don't come true?

I've heard rumors that

Spoiler

Haley Pullos is going to come on as a recast Ciara. She is actually a pretty decent actress

so maybe this teen scene is actually salvageable. The biggest mistake with this one was making Chase a rapist. You had actual character history between Ciara and Chase and they threw it away for some dumb shocking twist? And it's not like it was incredible acting like what happened between Todd and Marty on One Life to Live.

I will not be shocked if Joey gets written out and leaves. I feel like everything to me is pointing to the idea that they're going to swap out Joey for Tripp. The signs are so there, I think. Not that it's a great loss but I hope Joey gets a recast.

Edited August 11, 2017 by methodwriter85

[FnkyChkn34]

Are they even still teens anymore?  They are all in at least their second year of college now.  They SORASed them all past teen years (which could have been more interesting) and on to this stage of not-a-teen-but-not-an-adult-either phase.  It's not working, IMO.

[DisneyBoy]

It is a shame they skipped the formative years, but at least the characters that are still around all have a direction, finally: Theo will be a computer genius, Claire will be a singer-songwriter and Joey will be an inmate.

Thanks for the tipoff about the rumors, method, but from a clip I just saw online, boy I hope not.

[methodwriter85]

10 hours ago, DisneyBoy said:

It is a shame they skipped the formative years, but at least the characters that are still around all have a direction, finally: Theo will be a computer genius, Claire will be a singer-songwriter and Joey will be an inmate.

Thanks for the tipoff about the rumors, method, but from a clip I just saw online, boy I hope not.

I think they might

Spoiler

try to go for an established actress this time instead of taking a chance on a green actress again, which is why it might be Haley Pullos.

I feel like they basically went for them being 18 because of the rape and because they were aiming for a Ciara/Chad storyline until it got quashed.

They might "freeze" for a bit like Abby did. It feels like she was in college for about 7 or 8 years until her real age had more or less caught up with her SORAS age.

I do think the entire thing was a rush job because the Beige/JJ teen scene didn't take off like they expected it to, so we get this half-assed attempt at recreating the magic of the Last Chance Blast teen scene.

Edited August 12, 2017 by methodwriter85

[methodwriter85]

A year later and all that's left of that teen scene is a recast Ciara and Claire. I do think they actually tried with them as opposed to JJ's weird-ass teen scene where Dr. Dan, Jen, and Eve were somehow key players. I did think they went wrong in two crucial ways- Teen Ciara was horribly miscast, and Chase shouldn't have raped Ciara. They had a pretty good set-up and history there with them as childhood friends/frenemies, and it was stupid to throw that away because Josh Griffith loved the accolades he got over 20 years ago for Marty Saybrooke getting raped on One to Live.

[tribeca]

I wonder how Ciara would feel if chase came back apologized and said he changed.    Would she be forgiving?   Would it make her understand how some people can’t get past what Ben did ?

[methodwriter85]

Well, I thought they were reviving the teen scene with Allie but it looks like they aged her to be on par with the early twenty something scene with Ciara and Claire. Which makes sense but I'll be sad if the Last Chance Blast Revival Mess is the last teen scene we ever have. Then again, God the JJ teen scene and the 1stRecast Ciara teen scenes were so bad.

Edited June 13, 2020 by methodwriter85

[CanaryFan98]

I think JJ despite being a teen came across as too much of an old soul/mature to pull off the stereotypical teen scene. I can't imagine him getting into the teenage hijinks others did when he was a drug dealer to fellow rich kids  and hooked up with older women like it was nothing.  They tried to write it as a lame take on SBTB or one of those teen soaps and should've stuck to what worked. 

 

I think JJ/Bev/Rory/Paige could've worked had they done the following:

Delve into JJ's boarding school past more. I find it hard to believe he never had an affair with a teacher or maybe he sold drugs to this girl he was messing with she died because of it and her brother comes to Salem and tries to go after Paige to get back at JJ. Bring back Roxanne for this too if needed. He wants to be good but his bad side haunts him.

Rory had issues with his mom who treated him terribly when he got arrested it would've been nice to have seen a backstory as to why Rory turned out as he did.

Bev was interesting to me and had potential. She could've had a complicated romance with JJ and been his OTP.

Paige I would've recasted personally but they could've given her more of an edge and be Eve's moral compass. I also would've tied her into the Bradys given how she's Kim's stepgranddaughter. She could've taken up with an older man after finding about JJ/Eve and got caught up in something she can't handle as a result.  They could've had her be a doctor. In retrospect her death turned out to be pointless as its treated as an afterthought.

 

All of this could've been way better than what we got although I did like JJ/Eve it was poorly set up yet probably one of the better stories either character had on this show.

Claire/Chase/Ciara/Allie/Theo could've just aged naturally on the show... they could've casted ORK as Allie Horton instead of Claire as I think aging her as much as they did ruined Shelle's trajectory on the show in a lot of ways.

[methodwriter85]

Again though, that teen scene was just bizarre because it made Dr. Dan, Jennifer, and Eve central players instead of peripheral adults. Then again Dr. Tan was fucking everywhere on the show. I have never seen a Days character so thoroughly eat the entire show the way he did. The Ciara teen scene, I maintain, was a rush job to try and capture the Last Chance Blast magic. It doesn't look like there's been a better received teen scene, except maybe the Frankie/Jennifer storyline of the 1980's. It doesn't look like teenaged Hope really had one either- I was told she was similar to Laura on GH where they had her pretty much only interact with young adults instead of being seen in high school.

Edited June 13, 2020 by methodwriter85